4th & 5th April 2022
I recently had the pleasure of spending two days with Jim and Consuelo from the USA who were visiting their daughter in Valencia. As very keen birders, they were eager to include a couple of days of birding in their trip, and so we eventually opted to go for a day at the wetlands and a day in the mountains.
Day 1 – Coastal Wetlands
We were still suffering the after-effects of a freak weather system, and although the heavy rains had ceased, our first day was a little windy. We drove from their apartment in central Valencia and began our walk along the beach. We immediately had superb views of Audouin’s Gull, followed by Little Ringed Plover, Black-winged Stilt and a Purple Heron.
Audouin’s Gull
The strong winds had slowed down the previous few day’s heavy stream of Swallows, Swifts and Martins, but there were still a few around. Another recently arrived bird, Collared Pratincole were also seen in flight, as well as one that Jim spotted, sheltering from the wind behind a plant!
Collared Pratincole
We headed down the coast, stopping at our first hide where we had views of White-headed Duck, Red-crested Pochard, Garganey, Teal and Purple Swamphen. Happy with a few “lifers” for Jim and Consuelo, and even happier that we were managing to avoid the rain and snow that was hitting the interior of the region, we visited our next hide. Here we had good views of Mediterranean Gull, Sandwich Tern, Common Tern, Glossy Ibis and Whiskered Tern.
White-headed Duck
Although it was still a bit of a walk, I was keen to visit another viewing point, so we agreed to battle on into the wind! We managed to find a comfortable spot which was quite sheltered, and eventually enjoyed good views of Marsh Harrier, Great Crested Grebe, Great Egret and Shoveler. As we began our walk back to the car, the grassy scrub gave views of Hoopoe, Yellow Wagtail, Sardinian Warbler, Willow Warbler, Cetti’s Warbler and Redstart.
Common Redstart
We´d worked for the birds that we’d seen, but were delighted with the morning´s sightings. However, a break and a coffee were much needed! We found a bar and took a rest, discussing options for the following day.
The interior of the reserve seemed to be a little more sheltered than the coast, so we spent a few hours walking around its fields and tracks. It’s quite usual for effort to be rewarded, and our afternoon turned out to be very positive! A Booted Eagle circled above us for a long while, and a little later, our patience yielded super views of Sub-Alpine Warbler and Moustached Warbler.
Today has been a classic case of making an effort and getting the results, and by the end of the day our species list included…
Garganey, Northern Shoveler, Gadwall, Mallard, Green-winged Teal, Marbled Teal, Red-crested Pochard, Common Pochard, White-headed Duck, Greater Flamingo, Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Common Swift, Eurasian Moorhen, Eurasian Coot, Western Swamphen, Black-winged Stilt, Little Ringed Plover, Collared Pratincole, Black-headed Gull, Mediterranean Gull, Audouin’s Gull, Yellow-legged Gull, Whiskered Tern, Common Tern, Sandwich Tern, Great Cormorant, Grey Heron, Purple Heron, Great Egret, Little Egret, Cattle Egret, Glossy Ibis, Booted Eagle, Eurasian Marsh-Harrier, Eurasian Hoopoe, Eurasian Kestrel, Eurasian Magpie, Crested Lark, Moustached Warbler, Eurasian Reed Warbler, Barn Swallow, House-Martin, Willow Warbler, Common Chiffchaff, Cetti’s Warbler, Sardinian Warbler, Western Subalpine Warbler, Spotless Starling, European Robin, Common Redstart, European Stonechat, House Sparrow, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Western Yellow Wagtail, White Wagtail, European Greenfinch, Eurasian Linnet, European Goldfinch.
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Day 2 – Mountains
Our original plan had been to visit the steppe, but the forecast for that region was terrible, with winds of almost 60kmph! With that very much in mind, I proposed a trip to the mountains where conditions were set to be much better. This was roundly accepted, and so after a comfortable drive and a coffee stop, we were soon birding. The day began perfectly, with a dark-phase Booted Eagle followed by brief but quality views of a Goshawk in flight. We eventually managed to find Black Wheatear too.
Serin
The forest gave views of Firecrest, Crested Tit, Blackcap, Black Redstart, Serin and Siskin, and then we moved to a riverside spot where Jim identified the fish as Iberian Barbel. We then headed further up into the mountains where we established a lunch spot, and watched out across a huge crag. This gave us pleny of opportunity to watch Griffon Vulture in flight as well as on nests. We also had views of Short Toed Eagle, Raven, Chough and another Booted Eagle, this time pale-phase.
In the afternoon we drove across highland pastures where we saw Jay, Kestrel and large mixed flocks of Linnet, Chaffinch and Goldfinch. We eventually ended the trip on a peak from which, despite heavy cloud, we were able to get stunning flight views of Booted Eagle and Griffon Vulture, often watching them from above as they glided past below us.
Griffon Vultures
The whole trip had been a lot of fun, and I’d really enjoyed both the company and conversation of Jim and Consuelo. It was to come to a magical end when, just before heading back to the car for the drive home, a fox suddenly appeared! It stayed around for a good while, giving us the chance to get some photos. What a special moment!
Many thanks to such lovely people for a memorable two days. Our species list for day-2 included…
Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Great Cormorant, Eurasian Griffon Vulture, Short-toed Snake-Eagle, Booted Eagle, Northern Goshawk, Eurasian Kestrel, Eurasian Jay, Eurasian Magpie, Red-billed Chough, Common Raven, Crested Tit, Eurasian Crag-Martin, Common House-Martin, Common Chiffchaff, Cetti’s Warbler, Long-tailed Tit, Eurasian Blackcap, Sardinian Warbler, Common Firecrest, Spotless Starling, Eurasian Blackbird, European Robin, Black Redstart, European Stonechat, Black Wheatear, House Sparrow, Grey Wagtail, White Wagtail, Common Chaffinch, European Goldfinch, European Serin, Eurasian Siskin.
Written by Dave Warrington.